Message-ID: <54441asstr$1157289003@assm.asstr.org>
From: Shalon Wood <dstar@pele.cx>
Subject: {ASSM} Pandora's Box 28 (Mf Mff MMf rom ws exhib bdsm)
Lines: 696
Date: Sun, 03 Sep 2006 09:10:03 -0400
Path: assm.asstr.org!not-for-mail
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Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories
Followup-To: alt.sex.stories.d

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SPECIAL NOTE FOR READERS OF _Jason and Kylie, Naked In School_:

You may or may not be aware, but Shalon broke his arm in two places three weeks 
ago; Jason and Kylie is temporarily on hold (he had a nice cushion built up on 
Pandora's Box, which is why he switched to that. Please see 
http://playground.pele.cx for details, including news on when Jason and Kylie 
will return.

If you have any questions, please email us, or visit our forums at 
http://playground.pele.cx/forums and ask.
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SPECIAL NOTE FOR READERS WHO DON'T LIKE M/M SCENES:

You want to either make it through the upcoming M/M scene (next chapter, IIRC) 
or skip to the end, because the scene after that involves Pandora, a bottle of 
lube, and a latex catsuit that fits perfectly.

Meow.

And a blindfold.

(And I promise, not all of our stories are MM; we've only got three, in fact, 
which are. It's just that somehow those three (Pandora's Box, Prudence, and 
Jason and Kylie (to a very small degree -- two scenes) ended up being some 
of the first ones we posted.

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Standard disclaimers apply; this story may or may not contain, in any
given part, graphic depictions of lesbianism, homosexuality, group sex,
bdsm, underage (teen) sex, magic, occultism, violence, and biting 
sarcasm.  If you're underage, or if for any other reason it's illegal 
for you to read this, or you're disturbed by the content, please don't 
read it.

Archived at http://pandora.pele.cx, and we've got a web-forum at
http://playground.pele.cx/forums as well, for discussion of both
Pandora and our other stories. 

Comments *greatly* appreciated.

Enjoy,

Velvet
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Lucien turned as if he sensed their approach and watched them with his
strange silvery eyes. He stood up as they got near, those eyes flashing
red-gold to Gabriel's Sight, and smiled lazily, radiating easy, confident
sensuality.  Then he casually held out his hand to Gabriel. "Lucien. Lucien
Drake." His voice was like warm honey, or the caress of silk, or a lion
purring in the sun; deep, smooth, and seductive.

Pandora shivered, then frowned.

Gabriel took his hand. "Gabriel Ramirez."

His grip was just tight enough to be firm, without being painful, and his
skin was disturbingly soft and rather slick, textureless, though the
muscles underneath it were hard as steel. He shook Gabriel's hand for a
moment, then released it, and bowed slightly, offering his hand, palm-up,
to Pandora, a coaxing smile on his lips.

Pandora's frown grew more pronounced, but social niceties had been drummed
into her since birth. She literally _could not_ leave him there with his
hand sticking out, whether or not she wanted to, so reluctantly she lay
just the tips of her fingers in his hand. He closed his big fingers around
her small hand and bowed further, raising it to brush his lips across the
backs of her fingers. While he was doing so, his eyes rolled up to look not
at her, but at Gabriel, a gold light dancing in the silver. Gabriel knew...
_knew_ that some kind of test was taking place. Knew it with every fiber of
his being, but the instinctive reaction was too strong to deny, too strong
to obey rational thought.

Pandora froze... confused, irritated, and a bit shocked... long enough for
him to actually manage to touch her skin with his lips. His eyes turned the
color of molten gold with the contact, and he inhaled sharply just as the
glass in Gabriel's hand imploded with a sharp crack of sound, the scotch
splashing into the floor as silver blood welled up and started to drip
around the shards of glass that he'd driven into his hand.

Pandora snatched her hand back like she'd touched a hot stove, reaching for
Gabriel immediately, her eyes wide and horrified. "Gabriel! Oh my god..."

Gabriel gritted his teeth, trying not to say anything.

Lucien looked down, nodding to one of the teenagers still seated at his
table, then jerking his head towards the back. The boy scrambled up
immediately and headed that way at a jog. The others, when the demon
snapped his fingers, obeyed in various ways. The girl who'd been seated
closest to Lucien pulled out two chairs then turned and expertly snatched a
towel off the arm of a passing waitress who didn't even notice it was gone.
Others moved around, changing seats to provide a bit of a screen from the
general crowd. One handed over a glass full of almost clear liquid. One
girl took off her belt and handed it to the demon, another opened her purse
and pulled out a pair of tweezers, sliding them across the table by the
glass.

Lucian took the towel and wrapped it around Gabriel's hand, then put a hand
between the elf's shoulders and guided him towards the chair beside his.
"Sit," he said quietly. "We'll take care of it. No one will see a thing.
She'll be safely on the other side of you."

Gabriel blinked. "I...dammit, I _hate_ that." He allowed Lucian to guide
him to the chair, looking at Pandora. "I'm sorry, love. I just... react. I
don't intend to."

Her eyes were glassy, and as he watched, the first tear ran down her cheek.
"Gabriel," she whispered, her voice breaking. "Oh my love..." She looked
down at his hand, and her shoulders shook with a suppressed sob, but she
took his towel wrapped wrist and cradled it gently in her hands, then
carefully unwrapped it. The blood soaking the towel wasn't even faintly
red. It was as silver as mercury, maybe even shinier. It seemed to shimmer
and glow in the dim, flickering lights.

"He cannot help it," Lucien said quietly.

Pandora's head came up, and she glared at him. "I'm not mad at _him_!" she
snapped.

"I don't mean to," Gabriel repeated.

"I _know_," she said, looking up into his eyes. "Oh Gabriel..." She
shuddered, then carefully started removing the larger shards of glass,
looking sick and pale and like she wanted to burst into tears at every tug,
every fresh drop of blood. "Oh god, my poor love... I'm so sorry, oh god
I'm so sorry."

Gabriel frowned. "Why are you apologizing? You didn't _do_ anything."

"Yes I did! I made you hurt yourself... god, you're hurt, you're _hurt_!
Bleeding!" She bit her lip to stop her voice from rising hysterically. "It
w..won't happen again. I don't _care_ what people expect, or how I was
raised. It doesn't matter. I won't touch another man. Ever. Unless you
specifically order it. They can all go straight to hell, I won't hurt you
again!"

"No, love. It's okay. I've got to learn to control this," he said.

"That's up to you," she said. "But until you do, I should be helping you,
not... not _hurting_ you." She lay the last large piece on the table and
reached for the tweezers to start on the smaller pieces. "God... should
your blood be this color? I mean, is that normal? It looks... painful."

Gabriel gave a short laugh. "I have no idea."

Lucien said, "It is. They have no iron in their blood, of course, so it has
little resemblance to a human's, and the element that replaces it gives it
the glow."

Gabriel looked up at Lucien. "Why?"

"Because it's magical in nature. It's the source of most of your new
physical benefits, and the cause of the most pain during your
transformation as it came out of hiding and destroyed and replaced the
iron that was there. Were you High Court, that part wouldn't have been
quite as bad. High Court blood isn't transformed, merely very well
disguised, though there are a very few blood tests that can spot it,"
Lucien said, his head cocked as he watched Pandora remove the splintered
glass.

Gabriel shook his head. "No. Why the test? That's what it was, wasn't it?"

Again the lazy, sensual smile. "I like to know what I'm dealing with. Your
reaction told me much that simple questions could not."

Pandora came halfway out of her chair, tweezers clenched in her hand like a
weapon... In fact, she looked rather like she'd like to drive them through
Lucien's throat. "You utter... how dare you!"

Gabriel took a deep breath, visibly controlling himself. "I think he was
making sure I was safe to be around. It was a rather asinine way to go
about it, but I guess it was effective."

"I don't care what he was doing! He had no right to use me to hurt you!"

Lucien shrugged. "Rights are amorphous things, dear girl. I base my actions
more on what is necessary. But, because it pains me to have such a lovely
lady so wroth with me, I will say that I expected a verbal reaction, not an
act of self-injury."

"I'm not used to being this strong," Gabriel said.

Pandora sat back down, still angry, and resumed tending Gabriel's hand. "It
was a disgusting, manipulative, selfish thing to do. I'd say you should be
ashamed of yourself, but I doubt you _have_ any shame."

Gabriel's lips curved slightly. "I love you, you know," he said to Pandora.

She smiled up at him, and then bent her head and kissed his hand, very
gently. "I know. I love you, too. And you don't have any reason to worry,
not about anyone, and _certainly_ not about _him_."

Lucien grinned, flashing golden fangs. "Only because your bond grants you
immunity to my charms, precious. He'd have very good reason to be jealous
if it did not. You're right, you see... I have no shame at all."

"You have no charm, either," she snapped. "And I'd shoot myself before I'd
become one of your brainless followers. And don't address me like that. I'm
not your precious or your dear anything."

He sighed. "Judging much by appearances, aren't you? David, beside you, was
just offered a scholarship to MIT. Julia is working as a nurse while she
works on her degree in genetics. And Jason... ah, here's Jason," he smiled,
looking at the boy who was hurrying back with bandages, surgical tape, and
sutures, "Is somewhat of a prodigy. He started med-school at fourteen,
graduated with honors, and just finished his residency last year. Just
because they choose to serve doesn't make them brainless." His silver gaze
turned icy as he glanced at her collar, them met her eyes. "Anymore than it
does you."

He smiled again, his expression warming instantly. "And you have not chosen
to give me your name, so how could I address you by it?"

She flushed and looked down, but Gabriel could feel that her anger didn't
leave her. "My name is... " She hesitated a moment before finishing, "Tai,
you can call me Tai." She pronounced it like 'tie'.

He raised an eyebrow, smiling knowingly. "What? No last name? I know you'd
prefer that formality, it's rather obvious. Or do you have some muddled
belief that giving a demon your name gives him power over you?"

She glared, then said tightly, "I no longer care to accept the only last
name I can legally claim right now."

Gabriel said, softly, "Love, as far as I'm concerned, you're entitled to
mine."

She smiled up at him, her eyes soft. "Thank you. But that could cause
trouble for you right now. But soon. Soon."

Gabriel nodded. "Soon."

The boy Lucien had identified as the young doctor knelt down beside them.
"May I?" he asked in a quiet, shy voice, motioning at Gabriel's hand.
Pandora bit her lip, then looked up at Gabriel, making it his decision.

Gabriel nodded.

The boy, Jason, took his hand gently, nodded to himself, then used a bit of
gauze and the glass of alcohol to clean the clotting silver blood from the
wounds before picking out the last small slivers of glass. Pandora watched,
grimacing, and looking like she'd really prefer to hide her face but can't
turn away. Once the last of the glass is removed, the doctor looked at
Lucien. "It's not as bad as it could have been, Lord. No veins were cut. I
could stitch it, but since he's elven, it may heal faster without foreign
material present."

Lucien looked thoughtful. "Can you heal it, pet?"

"I... I don't know, Lord. I've never attempted to heal one of the sidhe,"
the boy said nervously. "They can trap you if you touch their energy."

Gabriel said, softly, "I wouldn't do that."

Pandora lay a hand on his arm and whispered, "Angel." 

Gabriel frowned. "You're right, love. I might not mean to, but...." He
sighed. "You're right. I can't promise that."

Lucien nodded. "Honesty is appreciated." Then he looked back to the boy.
"Try. If he accidentally entraps you, he will release you." Jason still
looked scared, so he added softly, "Or, if he's somehow played us false and
tries to take you, I will not allow it. I will protect you, as I have
promised."

Gabriel raised his good hand. "Wait. I might not be _able_ to release him."

"If you are willing, then I can remove any hold you might place on him with
no damage to either of you. It is only if you were unwilling to let him go
that there would be a problem," Lucien said, unconcerned, then nodded to
the boy. "Do it."

"Yes, Lord," the young doctor whispered, then closed his eyes and bent over
Gabriel's hand. His aura was a clear, bright green with a few gold swirls,
and had a clean, crisp look to it. As Gabriel watched, a bit of the green
reached out, sliding through his own aura to wrap around the hand, seeming
to soak into the wounds. The cuts began to tingle, and Jason gasped, his
jaw clenching as if he was in pain just as all the pain suddenly
disappeared for Gabriel and the cuts began to slowly pull closed. It took a
few minutes, but when the boy released his had, the cuts were merely tender
lines on his palm, mostly healed. The healer slumped down on his knees, his
head leaning against Gabriel's knee, looking exhausted.


"Thank you," Gabriel said quietly.

Jason turned his head to smile sweetly up at Gabriel and rub his cheek
against his knee.

"Jason?" Lucien asked mildly. "Are you simply being affectionate, or do you
require assistance?"

The boy blushed, then made an effort to sit up. "No, Lord. I mean, I'm
fine, Lord. I can feel it, and... it's a strong attraction, but it's not
like the other time. It's not a compulsion, just a desire."

A flicker of surprise quickly crossed Lucien's face. "Very well," he said.
"Julia, David, help Jason to his room to rest."

Gabriel's aura had followed the boy, clinging to his hands and sending
exploratory tendrils out from there, and he flushed, pulling his aura back.
"Sorry. I'm not used to this yet."

Pandora reached for his hand, turning it over and examining the healed
cuts.

"Like my back," she said. "But not quite as much, because that left just
scars."

Gabriel nodded. "Yeah. I wonder...."

Lucien looked at his other followers. "Leave us," he said quietly. "I will
call you if I have need of you." Reluctantly, casting curious looks at all
of them, the young people slipped away into the crowded bar.

Gabriel looked at Lucien, raising an eyebrow.

"Unlike my young healer, many of my people are artists. I prefer not to
cause them unnecessary distress, so it's best they not be exposed to you,"
was the rather confusing answer.

"Huh?" Gabriel asked.

Lucien put his elbows on the table and rested his chin on his folded hands.
"Is that why you came to me, for information?"

Gabriel nodded. "Yes. Specifically... Pandora's got some scars on her back
that we need to either remove, or hide. I don't know how to do it. I can
hide what I am... well, most of it, anyway... but I don't know how to hide
something on _her_."

"How extensive is the scarring?" Lucien asked.

Gabriel hesitated. "There's eight lines from shoulder to hip from my claws,
a couple of smaller ones, and then a set of fresh punctures." He sighed. "I
wasn't used to having claws, and... honestly, I'm not sure if I was me or
her when it happened. Things were... intense."

He raised an eyebrow, and smiled. "I see. And when, relative to your change
and to your bonding, did this take place?"

"About...um. Maybe an hour after my change? And if I understand what you
mean by the bonding, it was... more or less during, I guess," Gabriel said.

"Ah. I see. And they healed, too, during or immediately afterward, yes?"

"I don't honestly know. We kind of passed out, and they were healed when we
woke up, but there was enough time that there was a lot of blood."

"Very well. I know enough to know what happened now," Lucien said
cheerfully.

Pandora sat there, blushing bright red, trying to pretend the conversation
was _not_ happening, until he said that. Then, she couldn't help but look
up curiously.

"Oh?" Gabriel asked.

"Yes. It's fairly obvious, really, given the circumstances. It's also not a
very useful piece of information, so the price would be fairly small,"
Lucien said.

"Okay, define fairly small," Gabriel said.

Lucien smiled. "Usually, people come to me for fairly serious matters, and
there the price is simple and firm. Their allegiance to my superiors,
sometimes their worship for one or the other of them. It's a price that
comes with other rewards, as well. However, for small things, it becomes
more complicated. I have to ask myself, what do you have that I want?" His
smiled broadened into a wicked grin. "Then I have to rephrase the question
to what do you have that I want that you're willing to let me have. That
limits things a bit. You have no connections, not yet. Your powers are new,
and uncontrolled. She doesn't even know what she is, yet, so no doubt her
own abilities are just as limited...though perhaps quite strong."

Pandora's jaw clenched again, and her nose wrinkled in disgust, but she
didn't say anything.

"I don't believe there's anything that she could do for you," Gabriel says
carefully.

"Care to wager on that?" the demon asked.

Gabriel laughed. "Bet? With a demon? There's only about a _million_ stories
telling me what a bad idea that is."

Lucien laughed. "Well, it was worth a try."

Gabriel tilted his head. "What do you _think_ she could do for you?"

Lucien sighed. "Unfortunately, I cannot think of any way to make the
request that would not give you very useful information for free. And
that's against my principles. Of course, if you were to request that
information, then we could discuss the price."

"In the... mundane world," Gabriel said thoughtfully, "There's a concept
known as 'the first hit's free'."

Lucien tilted his head curiously, "And don't you think I've already told
you things you didn't know, hmm?"

"Some. Not much. Not enough to... evaluate your product, so to speak,"
Gabriel said.

He smiled slowly. "You know that I can tell you what I say I can. And you
know what that information is worth to you."

Gabriel shook his head. "Actually, I don't. Because I'm not sure what the
currency is, I have no way to know what I'm willing to pay."

"You want to know what she is? What she can do? How she can protect herself
from anyone, whether you're there or not? Want to know why she was so drawn
to you? Why you bonded so fast, so suddenly, without any real choice in the
matter? You want to know _what's going on_?" He shrugged. "These are the
things I can tell you. A hundred years ago, you would have had to have
found a mage who could summon me. It would have taken a huge sacrifice,
possibly even a human sacrifice, and there would still have been a chance
it would fail and I would kill both of you. Now, how it is done is my
choice, and things are more civilized, yes? But do not let the veneer of
normality fool you into thinking the information is any less valuable. That
is not the case, not even close."

Gabriel nodded. "I agree it's valuable. But without knowing the currency, I
can't know what I will pay. And I won't bargain without knowing that; I
don't want to risk committing myself to more than I can afford to pay -- in
any sense."

"For information on the scars... a small favor," Lucien said. "One that you
have no ethical qualms against, that will take no more than a few hours
effort and cause no pain or lasting inconvenience."

Gabriel looked thoughtful. "And which won't cause me great inconvenience at
the time."

"Agreed. Any inconvenience will be minor, not requiring great expenditure
of resources or effort."

"I'm actually more worried about timing," Gabriel said. "There are times
when the loss of a few hours would be a great inconvenience."

"Then the favor will not be anything where timing is vital, or if it is,
you can choose not to accept it. Good enough?" Lucien asked.

Gabriel nodded. "Done."

"Good!" Lucien sat up straight, smiling brightly. "The scars healed because
of the energy of the creation of the bond. Any major wound would have
healed then. If the bond had formed on a battlefield, and she'd been dying,
it would have saved her. It's very old, very powerful magic, and I have
reason to believe that, between the two of you, it is even stronger than
normal."

"Why?"

"That's a different question. Now..." He sighed. "The other part of your
question was how to heal the scars. I'm afraid that you can't. Well,
rather, magic can't. Because, you see... if she hadn't wanted them, at
least unconsciously, they _would_ have healed. But she did. And since she
did, they're a visible mark of the bond, and cannot be removed unless the
bond is broken. As that would possibly kill her, I doubt that would be
worth it to you."

"I wouldn't break it anyway," Gabriel said flatly. "What about the other
option I mentioned, hiding them?"

Lucien slowly shook his head. "She doesn't want to hide them. If she were
ashamed of them, they wouldn't be there."

"It's not a matter of shame, it's a matter of safety. Her mother...."
Gabriel shook his head.

Lucien nodded. "I understand. But it is her attitude that determines
whether or not magic will affect the scars."

"Why?" Pandora asked. "I can see why it would affect the way they healed...
I _did_ want to keep them. I don't even really know why, but I would have
been sad if there'd been no trace left. But why would it matter to just
covering them up?"

"Because your own magic is stronger than anyone available to work the
illusion," Lucien said. "You might could find someone... a truly powerful
were, perhaps, or a particularly magically inclined vampire, or a lesser
god... but it wouldn't last very long. You would unconsciously break down
the spell, wear it away. Probably within hours."

Pandora sighed. "So your 'answer' isn't any help at all, then."

His eyes glittered, and there was the momentary impression of great wings
opening and settling behind him. "The answer to _that_ question isn't, no."

She stiffened irritably. "I'm not owing you _anything_, so you can just
give up on trying to get me to ask more."

Gabriel looked at Lucien curiously. "What question would it help to have
the answer to, then?"

"What she is, of course, and what she can do. Oh, you might figure it out
on your own, eventually," he said, "But wouldn't it be nice to be able to
use her powers to your benefit _now_?"

"Gabriel, there's _no_ reason to trust him. He's a _demon_ for godsake!
Lying is what they _do_," Pandora insisted.

"You've got a point."

Lucien leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms across his chest. It
looked odd, for some reason, and Gabriel realized that, given the width of
the chest and the heavy muscles of the arms, he ought not be able to do
that... but his arms were a good six inches longer than a human's would be.
Lucien smiled, rather sadly, and gave Pandora a hurt, woeful look. "What
makes you think I'm a demon?"

"Well, I... " She stopped, realizing she was basing it mainly on Gabriel's
suspicion as they walked in the club, then her jaw firmed and she asked
sharply, "Well, aren't you?"

He grinned. "It's a complicated question. My mother was a succubus, my
father an aspect of the sun god, and I was raised originally by humans who
later gave me over to a pack of wereleopards. I've been bound like an
animal, used like a slave, loved like a son, and worshipped like a god. But
I've never lived in Hell, so I don't think I really _qualify_ as a demon,
yes?"

Her eyes narrowed. "You're lying. You said that a hundred years ago, you'd
have been summoned, and you described it. The only thing that are summoned
like that are demons, and they're summoned from Hell. So either you were
lying then, or you're lying now. Either way, that makes everything you say
suspect."

"Clever girl," Lucien said fondly. "Wrong, of course, but clever. I've
never lived in Hell. But I was caught up in the mythology of it, quite a
while ago. I was strong enough to resist simply becoming just another
demonlord, but not strong enough to escape all the constraints. I wasn't
pulled into Hell to bow unwillingly before Lucifer. But I was, for a very
long time, subject to summoning by any fool who managed to uncover my true
name, and constrained to... abide by certain unpleasant stereotypes. I'm
not complaining, mind you. It was much worse for most of the others, and
for me, it was a relatively short period of bondage."

"How did you get free, then?" Gabriel asked.

The chair came back down and Lucien reached for his wineglass. "It wasn't
just me, and it wasn't my doing. Lucifer freed us all. That's why I'm
working for Him now. He deserves my allegiance."

Gabriel looked at him skeptically. "Um. Look, I don't want to be rude,
but... you're serving the Father of Lies, and you want us to believe what
you say?"

Lucien sat up straight, suddenly looking much, much larger. Gabriel could
see the gleaming black horns, the unfurled wings, the flame-colored eyes,
and the skin that shone like hot gold. "I serve He who stands for Freedom.
He no longer bows beneath the weight of titles given Him by His enemy. It
was a long struggle, full of more pain than you could ever comprehend, but
He is free now, and with Him, the rest of us can once more be what we
choose to be, rather than what the Enslaver would force us to be."

"The thing is," Gabriel said, "That's... well, that's the sort of thing I'd
expect a demon to say."

"Of course it is," Lucien said, voice cold. "There are many expectations
about 'demons'. Those expectations, those _beliefs_ built the cage that
kept us trapped in our unwilling roles for so many centuries. The Enslaver
is very good at spreading the 'truth' he wants known, and using his
followers to punish anyone who commits the 'sin' of questioning it."

"You're saying...what, exactly?" Gabriel asked.

"That only a fool would believe the words of a god that forbids questions."

"You... might have a point there. But, well, you could also be very good at
lying. In fact, if you _are_ lying, then by definition you'd be good at it.
Impasse," Gabriel said.

"But I don't tell you not to question me," Lucien pointed out. "I don't
insist you take what I say on 'faith'. Nor do I claim to be the only god
with the only way."

"Then you have some kind of proof?"

"Nothing that someone who wanted to disbelieve could not dismiss. I can
offer words... of course, words are all the 'proof' that the enemy offers,
as well. At least, from us, the words come directly, and you have the
opportunity to question." Lucien relaxed, and once again Gabriel saw just a
man. A very large, very exotic man, but just a man.  "And we ask nothing of
you. We do not say, 'believe only this'. Nor does my Lord tell you how to
live your life. He does not condemn you for your desires. He does not
insist that you degrade yourself as an act of 'worship'," Lucien sneered.
"He desires respect, belief, not mindless, slavish devotion."

Pandora shifted uncomfortably, moving closer to Gabriel and slipping an arm
around his waist.

"Why? Why does he _need_ our belief?" Gabriel asked.

"All gods need belief," Lucien said simply.  "There are a few, ah, 'true
gods' I suppose you'd call them, who can still exist without any belief at
all, but they're rare. Most gods are formed by human belief, and shaped by
that belief, and it is the source of all of their power. Lucifer is one of
those, and for so very long He's been cast in the role that the Enslaver,
the One-God, the Great Liar made for him. As people believed, so was He
shaped. In this way, the Enslaver punished Him and kept Him weak. But part
of Him fought it, never surrendered, never died. And so slowly, subtly, He
worked to shift the tides, to change the way He was perceived, until at
last enough people believed in Him as something other than the evil
counterpart of the One-God that He could finally break free, and with His
freedom came my own, and that of countless others. Now He seeks more belief
to ensure that He can maintain His victory. He gathers strength, all of the
Four do, because one day, the War will come. The Great Liar will allow Them
to live in peace. He would destroy every other deity, if he could, and the
Four, having once been forced to be a part of his Great Lie, are
particularly hated by him."

"The Four? Who are they?"

"Why are you telling us this for free?" Pandora interrupted.

Lucien smiled. "Telling this is why I'm here. It is my duty, my... job, if
you will. I am spreading belief, and therefore strengthening my Lord and
helping to ensure the continuation of my own freedom. I am also recruiting
special followers... priests, you might say ... for the Four."

Gabriel nodded. "Logical. If you're telling the truth, then every person
you tell makes Lucifer that much safer."

Lucien nodded. "_If_ they believe, yes.  Some do not. But many do, and
every bit of belief helps."

"So... if Lucifer isn't evil, what is he? What _is_ Hell, then?" Pandora
asked.

"Lucifer is Freedom. Freedom to speak as you will, freedom to love as you
wish, freedom to be whatever you want to be. He is delight in every
'forbidden' pleasure. He is the release from undeserved guilt. He is
sensuality, primal pleasure, self-indulgence, and wild hedonism. He is
Bacchus, and Pan, and Dionysus, and Eros. He is the Morning Star, who
heralds the coming of the Light. He fights the chains of society, of guilt,
of class and prejudice and ignorance." Lucien bowed his head and finished
quietly, "And Hell is His realm, and is changing as fast as His power can
shape it."

"So... Um. What happens to the souls of people who decide to go along with
you?" Pandora asked uncomfortably.

Lucien shrugged. "Whatever they believe will happen, generally. A lot of
humans believe in reincarnation, I think. They're not tortured by demons,
if that's what you mean, not even the ones who do end up in Hell."

Gabriel was staring at the demon thoughtfully. "Blood."

Pandora looked up at him, confused. "Blood? What about it?" Lucien looked
blank, as well.

"Swear it in blood. Swear on your blood that you're telling the truth, and
I'll believe you," Gabriel said.

"Ah. I see," Lucien said with a slow smile. "Certainly. But I feel I
should point out that there's also no proof that blood oaths are _truly_
binding to demons, even if I were, technically, a demon. You just have, as
with everything else, words."

Gabriel shook his head. "All the legends are clear on this point. _None_ of
them say that the devil broke whatever contract was involved; they all say
that he outsmarted the mortal." He grinned. "Well, except for Daniel
Webster, of course."

"Very well," Lucien said. "Tell me exactly what you wish me to swear to, so
that you will have no reason to think that the phrasing was untrustworthy."

"Swear to me that... Hmm. That you're telling the truth about Lucifer
standing for Freedom, that he truly is not evil, and that you are not
attempting to withhold any information from us that would contradict that.
Swear to us that..." He hesitated, then smiled. "That it is truly and
without reservation in the best interests of humanity for us to believe
you, that it will lead to greater happiness and freedom for everyone, and
less pain."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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-- 
Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights
reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated.
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